Employment Insurance premiums will be lower than anticipated in 2019

The Canada Employment Insurance Commission says employment insurance premiums will be lower than expected in 2019.

The commission says the rate will be $1.62 per $100 of insurable earnings, which is four cents lower than anticipated.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau and Jean-Yves Duclos, minister for families, children and social development, say in a joint statement that the EI premium rate has been reduced “thanks to a strong and growing economy.”

The statement says the new rate is almost 14 per cent lower than the rates in 2015 and that it’s the lowest rate since 1980.

Randall Bartlett, chief economist at the Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy says the low premium rate is a reflection of the strong Canadian job market.